Interieur met zittende mannen c. 1873 - 1903

George Hendrik Breitner made this drawing of seated men with graphite on paper. This direct medium allowed for the rapid notation of a scene, capturing a moment in time. The soft grayness of the graphite lends itself to the creation of tone and shadow, while the relative smoothness of the paper permits a good deal of fine detail, as we see in the faces of the men. The artist's choice of materials speaks to his interest in the everyday, recording the world around him with immediacy and without pretense. It’s also important to remember that drawings like this were often preparatory. Breitner may have envisioned this scene as a painting; a much more laborious form of production. In his work, as in this sketch, we gain insight into the artist's working process. By valuing the trace of the hand and the evidence of labor, we can move beyond traditional notions of artistic genius and appreciate the social context in which art is made.